Winners aren’t always grinners

MANCHESTER UNITED’S summer has been mixed in the transfer market once again. Their purchase of Harry Maguire seems sensible — if top-heavy on price — while their pursuit of Juventus forward Paulo Dybala looks as though it comes with the same risks attached as moves for Angel di Maria and Radamel Falcao in 2014. Around the club, meanwhile, talk has been of an upbeat mood, with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seeking to address a fitness problem that saw effort levels drop dramatically towards the end of last season. Two observations here. Firstly, even Sir Alex Ferguson used to smile a lot in pre-season. It didn’t mean much then and it doesn’t now. Secondly, if player output dropped so much last March and April, there could be another explanation. Maybe they just weren’t trying.